Blind Dates and How to Survive Them
by Pridesen
Summary: Did Alec like blind dates? No. Did Alec like girls? No. Did Alec like blind dates with girls? Most definitely no. Did Alec like when random guys interrupted his blind dates with girls? Apparently so. [Malec, AU-ish]
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is a thing that happened after five cups of coffee and forty hours of staying awake. Hope you like it.**

**Disclaimer: Cassandra Clare owns the characters, I (unfortunately) don't. I own the sort of plot, any and all spelling/grammar mistakes and the bad jokes.**

**-.::.-**

Alec was going to kill Jace. It was inevitable, really. He'd also probably have to kill Izzy, and Clary, and whoever else had been on board in their charming little game of '_Let's set Alec up once again_'. It clearly didn't matter how many times Alec told Jace, or Isabelle, that he wasn't interested in dating, or how he tried to subtly hint that he was most definitely not interested in dating _girls_. Alec might as well have been talking to a wall, since somehow they always managed to get him into the same situation which he really hated. This evening was no different.

Alec stared at his half empty glass, slumping against the chair in a pose that he hoped screamed '_leave me alone_' to anyone trying to approach him. He really wasn't in the mood to let down another girl with some half-ass excuse - he didn't like lying, which made it thousand times harder for him, and a thousand times easier for anyone to see right trough him. Especially when he wasn't feeling so good. Like now.

Downing the rest of his wine, Alec wished he had stayed in the Institute instead. He should've known something was up when Jace had appeared in his room, grinning like a madman.

Jace, who had ran out the second they had stepped in to the restaurant, leaving Alec with a pat on the shoulder and a 'good luck, man'.

Alec's phone chimed, making him glance downwards at the table. Seeing the name on the screen, Alec narrowed his eyes before grabbing the phone and texting back.

_she there yet? she cute? details please_

_Shut up Iz. No she's not here. No you can't have details if she ever shows up._

Alec was hoping against odds that she really wouldn't show up at all. Maybe then he'd be able to give Jace an 'I'm hurt and won't be going on another date ever again' speech, and be left in peace for a few weeks. But that was probably too much to ask, seeing as it was Jace he was talking about now.

The screen of the phone lit up again, showing Izzy's reply;

_rly? she was suppose 2 b there ages ago. txt her?_

Alec sighed, and wondered how pathetic he had to look. Sitting alone in a full restaurant, on a Friday evening. Looking like he was ready to murder anyone who walked past him without any second doubt. Alec answered his sister, and could already feel a headache forming. _Perfect_, he thought. _Just perfect._

_I don't have her number. Just leave it, I'm fine._

The door opened with a cling, and Alec glanced up - wishing he hadn't a second after. A man walked in, his hair tousled up from the wind and showing about million different colors variating from blue to dark purple. He had a black trench coat on, and red jeans which made him look better than all of Jace's girlfriends put together.

_And_ _he was alone_.

Alec's heart did a little dance of joy, before he realised that right behind the man was walking a girl who was probably Alec's date for tonight. A familiar feeling of panic and anxiety settled in, and Alec wondered if she would notice him running to the bathroom to escape the situation. And then the girl was sitting in front of Alec, smiling, and Alec forced his lips to lift upwards.

"I'm Jenny, nice to meet you", the still smiling girl said, and shifted her chair a bit closer to the table. A bit closer to Alec, who resisted the urge to lean away. She wasn't ugly by any means; she had nice, green eyes and brown hair and all that. She just wasn't guy.

_Hi, I'm I-don't-give-a-fuck, nice to meet you too_. Alec tried to push his thoughts back and made an effort to keep smiling, thought it most likely looked more like a grimace by now.

"I'm Alec." He managed to choke out, and hoped it wasn't clear on his face how he wanted to be anywhere else than where he was at the moment.

Jenny went back to talking, explaining how she knew Jace and was _so glad_ that he had set them up, and wasn't Alec such a sweetheart for agreeing to see her? Alec nodded his head absently from time to time, his eyes wandering around the room. The man who had come in before Jenny was nowhere to be seen, and Alec tried not to let his disappointment show. He had been alone, and Alec could've _sworn _he had looked at Alec's way before, and-

"So, do you usually do this to your dates?"

Alec was brought back from his thoughts by Jenny, who was glaring at him.

"Do what?"

"Ignore them for the sake of checking out better girls?"

Alec resisted the urge to sigh and roll his eyes. It was a miracle how Jace always found the worst possible dates for him. Just as he was about to say something (a complete and see-trough lie), a hand appeared on Alec's shoulder. Alec glanced up - and saw the man from earlier, looking at Jenny with a polite smile. He tried to ignore the flip his heart made at the sight of the other man.

"I'm so sorry, but I _just _noticed that my old friend's over here and I just _couldn't _resist the urge to come up and talk. It's been _so _long, hasn't it?" The stranger blabbered, giving Alec a pointed look and a smile. Alec grabbed the story like a starving man.

"Oh yeah, it has. We haven't talked in _ages_" Alec said, and Jenny looked confused. _You and me both_, Alec thought but kept pretending he knew exactly who this man was. If all went well, hopefully he _would _know exactly who this man was after some time.

"Would you mind if I borrowed him just for a second?" The man was asking, and without waiting for Jenny's response, dragged Alec out of his chair and to the other side of the restaurant. They sat behind a partition, blocking Jenny from seeing them.

Alec had never been more grateful to anyone in his life.

The man was sitting in front of Alec, staring at him and Alec couldn't help but notice that his eyes were the most beautiful pair of eyes he had ever seen. They were green with speckles of gold thrown in, and lined with glitter. _Glitter._

"So... who did I just save from a horrible blind date?" He asked, smirking at Alec. Who did not blush. Not at all.

"I'm Alec. And it wasn't _that_ horrible, just..." _She wasn't my type? _She's_ are not my type? _Alec didn't know how to continue so he let the sentence hang in the air. Either the other man didn't notice, or he didn't care.

"Magnus Bane. And it did look quite horrible to me," the man - Magnus - began. "But then again, I'm not into girls anyway." He was still grinning at Alec, who was pretty sure he was about to combust into little pieces.

"Me neither. I mean, I don't like girls. I mean I _like _girls, I just don't _like _like them." And could Alec sound more like a brain damaged twelve-year old? He felt himself blush, _again_, and cursed his pale face not for the first time.

"Really? Well what, then, were you doing with that poor girl over there?" Magnus asked, eyes twinkling. Alec felt suddenly very, very happy that Jace had made him come here for the stupid blind date.

"My friend, Jace, set me up. I was just about to make a run for it when she showed up." Alec said, and Magnus laughed.

Alec decided he could happily spend the next forever listening to him laugh. It wasn't sarcastic, like Jace's; it wasn't annoying like Clary's; it wasn't too high-pitched like Izzy's. It was happy, and bubbly, and free and Alec liked it. A lot.

"Alright then, Alec. Is it short for something else?" Magnus raised an eyebrow, and Alec's stomach did flipping exercises once again. And at the same time his brain was freaking out.

Because Alec _was _short for something; Alexander. But he didn't like people calling him Alexander - never had. Other side of his mind screamed _'Tell him it's not, say it's just Alec_' while the other side answered '_You can't lie and you know it!_'.

The second side won.

"Yeah, it- my full name's Alexander."

"Alexander. I like it," Magnus said and to his own suprise, so did Alec. "Didn't catch your last name, by the way?"

"Lightwood."

"Alexander Lightwood, huh?"

And so Alec and Magnus sat for hours, talking, and neither of them noticed how Jenny eventually left or how Alec's phone chimed with new messages at least ten times. They noticed each other, and that was enough for them.

**-.::.-**

**Possibly making a second chapter. Just noticed how cheesy the ending was. Also noticed how tired I am. Leeeeave a review/favorite if you liked it, if not then thank you anyways for reading it.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Yeah so this is turning out to be longer than I thought. So at least a third chapter coming up. Probably fourth, 'cause I'm lazy and write about thousand words per chapter or so. Anyway, hope you enjoy it! **

**Also a **_**huge **_**thank you to those who reviewed/followed/favorited! It really does mean a lot. So thank you.**

**Disclaimer: Still own nothing, no matter how much it pisses me off**

**-.::.-**

Alec did, however, notice the messages when he finally left the restaurant, with a grin plastered on to his face. It had been there all evening, and he briefly wondered how Magnus had managed to make Alec instantly like him that much in just one night. Usually it took a lot of time to make Alec even consider someone as a friend. _Or more_, his brain whispered but Alec tried not to pay it any mind.

He scrolled through the texts, not bothering to reply to any of them. The bitter cold air was biting the tips of his fingers, but Alec ignored it.

[Izzy, 19:22] _alec, is she there already?_

[Izzy, 19:31] _answer me alexander_

[Izzy, 19:56] _jace said jenny texted him, smthing about u leaving?_

[Izzy, 19:58] _please tell me you didn't ditch her alec_

[Jace, 20:01] _iz's freaking out, you should probably text her back_

[Jace, 20:03] _there's a possibility of her ripping her hair off – text her_

[Izzy, 20:05] _why are you not replying?_

[Izzy, 20:10] _alec what do you think you're doing?_

[Izzy, 20:16] _fine, don't answer. but we're talking about this when u get back!_

Which was why Alec walked as slowly as possible, taking his time. The Institute wasn't that far away, but if he skipped a little from his normal route, he could have at least ten minutes of peace before he had to face Isabelle. The last thing he needed was for her to ruin his good mood with her endless questions, probably going from _What were you thinking? _to _Do you not know how to answer your phone _to _Why do you look so happy? _

Because Alec indeed looked – and felt – happy. Well, happier than he had in a while. And he could thank Magnus for that. Through the course of the evening he'd learned that they shared a lot of things in common; they'd talked about everything and anything, without running out of subjects which was quite rare with Alec. He had a tendency to talk about his favourite books for minutes on, and eventually people got bored. Magnus didn't, apparently.

And though Magnus was a few years older than him, he didn't think Alec was desperate or annoying, or anything else Alec had feared at one point.

So yes, Alec was allowed to be more than happy right now. A smile tugged his lips, and faltered only a little when he reached the Institute. The building seemed bigger and somewhat darker than usual, and Alec really didn't want to go in there. Especially if he had to face Izzy. Taking the last few steps, Alec took a deep breath. _She's your sister, _Alec thought. _She's not going to eat you _–_ probably. _Just as he was about to step in through the door, another text came.

[Magnus, 21:02] _we should see sometime, without the whole 'saving you from a blind date' context._

Alec grinned while reading it, and after stepping in, stopped at the doorway to reply. Except he didn't get the change, because the second he started typing, someone yelled his name from the other side of the hallway he was in. The 'someone' quickly turned out to be Isabelle.

"Alexander Lightwood, stop right there!"

Alec winced at the use of his full name. It hadn't sound that bad when Magnus had said it, for whatever reason. He stuffed his phone in to his pocket, and raised his hands in surrender. "Don't shoot, it's just me."

And just as he had suspected, the first thing his sister asked was: "Why do you look like it's Christmas or something?" She frowned, narrowing her eyes at Alec and crossing her arms. She looked like she'd had a small breakdown, her hair not in it's usual state of perfection and her make-up a little smudged.

"No reason. Am I not allowed to be happy ever once in a while?"

Izzy's glare softened immediately, her shoulders relaxing a bit. Alec didn't even feel that bad about making her feel guilty. Not as much as he should've, anyway.

"Of course you are," she started. "It's just..."

"Not like me?"

"Exactly."

They stared at each other in silence, until Alec's phone rang again. Isabelle glanced at it in surprise, eyebrows climbing up almost to her hairline. "Someone texted you?" It came out more like a question than a statement, and Alec couldn't blame her. Usually the only people who ever had reason to contact him were Izzy and Jace, and since she was standing in front of Alec and Jace could come down if he had something to say, it left little options.

"Uh... yeah. I guess."

"You guess?"

Alec felt like he was being interrogated, and in that moment Izzy seemed more terrifying than any police officer ever could.

"No, I-"

"Who's it from?"

"No one."

Isabelle stepped closer, extending her arm towards Alec. "Tell me who it's from or I'll see for myself."

And why was Alec related to her again? Reluctantly, he reached for the phone and glanced at the screen.

[Magnus, 21:13] _is it weird that i keep thinking about your eyes? it probably is, isn't it?_

Alec smiled, but it vanished fast when the phone was snatched from his hand. Quickly looking up, Alec realized in panic that Izzy had indeed gone through with her thread, and was eyeing his phone with a frown. "Who's Magnus?"

Alec suddenly found it very hard to breath. His brain was having a panic attack, and apparently so was his lungs which felt like they were about to jump to his throat. The tight feeling around his chest that he'd felt in the restaurant for a small moment came back.

Isabelle noticed, and forgot all about the phone in a matter of seconds. "Alec? Alec, are you okay?" Her voice was worried as she leaned closer to Alec, lightly shaking his shoulder.

He managed to nod in a response, and tried to calm down. This was _Izzy_, his sister – she wouldn't judge him if she knew, right? Of course she wouldn't. Taking a few deep breaths (or trying his best to), Alec choked out; "We need to talk", before walking past Isabelle and to his room upstairs. Sitting on the edge of his bed, eyes shut, he heard the door close softly behind her in a few minutes.

**-.::.-**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: So just to clear a few things up;**

**1. ****Jace is their brother, not just a friend (thanks for asking - I kind of forgot to mention it before, haha)**  
><strong>2. Magnus is a mortal in every way.<strong>  
><strong>3. Alec and all of them are shadowhunters; I just don't know if it'll be an important thing just yet.<strong>

**And after that let me take a moment to just thank every single person reviewing, favouriting (is that a word?) and following. I can't stretch this enough, but it does mean a lot and inspires me to continue writing. So thank you. AND I hope Izzy or Alec don't seem out of character in this or anything - if they do, pretend it's supposed to be like that.**

**Disclaimer: Still no owning is happening in my life.**

**-.::.-**

"So..." Izzy began, walking towards the bed and sitting down next to Alec. "Wanna explain a couple of things?" Her voice wasn't mean or accusing, but Alec flinched away from it anyway. Opening his eyes, he swallowed nervously before looking over at his sister who was watching him worriedly. It was an odd look on his sisters face, a one he hadn't seen in a long time.

"I guess I'll- I'll just start from what happened at the date, alright?" Alec said, shifting uncomfortably and choosing to look at the floor instead of Isabelle. At least the floor didn't stare back. When she didn't reply, he continued.

"So, um... I was waiting for that girl – Jenny – to show up. I was nervous and angry at you and Jace, for setting me up again. I was pretty much about to leave the place, and tell you that it didn't work out or something, when she finally came. And right before her, so did Magnus."

Alec paused, glancing over at Izzy, waiting for some kind of reaction. She simply stared back, giving away nothing and simply saying; "Go on." Alec did.

"She, uh, sat down and introduced herself and all that, you know? And then I guess I must've looked _miserable_ or something, because next thing I knew Magnus was feeding her some lie about us being old friends and basically giving me a get-away-from-jail-free card. Which I used. And so we went to sit down and talk. About stuff. And then talk some more."

Isabelle was still quiet, letting Alec talk through everything. He wasn't sure if he wanted to. The more he got to talk, the more nervous he got, and so the more he rambled about things he didn't necessarily want Izzy to know about.

"Then he gave me his number, and we kind of agreed to see again sometime. And that's it, really."

Alec hoped Izzy would leave it at that, and not ask for any details. She was smart; she could figure out by now that Alec was most definitely not straight. There was _no_ need for her to hear it from Alec personally. There was no need for her to cause Alec a breakdown – he was already on the verge of panic.

There was no need –expect that she was Isabelle.

"Are you... Alec, where are you getting at with this?"

And Alec didn't know how to answer. What did she want him to say? '_I'm crushing on a stranger who I met on a blind date, and he happens to be a guy_' was supposed to be a good enough explanation, right? Alec fiddled with the sleeve of his shirt, staring at the white walls of his room but not really seeing them. Silence fell between them again, hanging in the air until Isabelle decided to break it.

"Alec?"

He looked back at Izzy. She was smiling softly, and reached out to touch Alec's shoulder. He tensed, and she seemed to notice because her grip only tightened for a moment before she started talking in a low, soothing voice.

"You don't have to say it, if you don't want to. I wish you'd told me earlier, but I get it. It's _okay_. And I just want to let you know that I still love you, alright? You're my brother – nothing's gonna change that. Okay?"

Alec felt a lump in his throat, enabling him from speaking. A part of him had been terrified of Izzy's reaction, and he felt relief floating through him. He did the only thing he could think of, and leaned forward to put his arms around Isabelle in a hug. Resting his head on Izzy's shoulder, he closed his eyes. _She doesn't hate me. She still loves me. She isn't disgusted._

Alec felt Izzy's hands on his back, the two of them sitting quietly and holding each other. It reminded him of the time when she had gone through her first bad break-up, and Jace had left Alec with the job of being a shoulder to cry on. They'd sat together, much like now. Not talking, or crying, or eating gallons of ice cream – just being some sort of comfort to the other.

"Thank you", Alec whispered into her hair, voice barely audible.

"Don't thank me yet," Izzy responded and continued; "Now you're obligated to talk about boys with me." Alec laughed, opening his eyes and pulling away with a smile. She smiled back at him, before the smile turned into a devious smirk and she handed Alec his phone.

"You should text him back – Magnus, was it? You're probably freaking him out", she said and stood up. With another smile, she was out of the room, leaving Alec sitting alone on his bed with a bright grin on his face and a weight lifted off his shoulders.

**:::,,,:::,,,:::**

[Magnus, 21:45] _if i'm too forward or anything, just tell me, okay?_

[_Reply to _Magnus, 21:51] _no i just had to talk to my sister about something. it's all good now, tho. not ignoring you or anything, don't worry._

[Magnus, 21:55] _oh alright. great. i have a tendency to get over-attached, please say if its too much. so, you wouldn't be doing anything tomorrow by any chance?_

Alec grinned, turning his eyes from the screen of the phone to the window. He was almost sure he was free the next day, and if something turned out it was hopefully a thing he could turn down. If Jace wanted someone to train with, there was always Izzy - besides, they'd barely even come across a demon of any sort in the last few _months_. Unless they were planning some huge, secret attack, there wasn't much to worry about.

Alec really hoped they weren't planning any kind of attack at all.

He texted back again, saying he was most likely free for the whole day before placing the phone on the table beside his bed and turning the smaller lamp on. He walked across the small room, shutting the main lights down and closing the curtains, and crawled under his covers.

A small smile found it's way on his face for the umpteenth-time that day. He'd met Magnus, he'd sort of told Isabelle about it, he'd managed not to break down and cry on the floor. In terms of Alec's life, that counted as an especially good day. If Alec believed in cheesy lines, he'd say life was smiling at him.

A new message arrived, and Alec reached for the phone. Opening the screen, he vaguely wondered if anyone would notice the sudden increase of texting in his phone bill. Probably (and hopefully) not. He didn't want to explain himself to his parents anytime soon.

[Magnus, 22:02] _meet me tomorrow at the same place as today? or is it too soon?_

Smirking, Alec replied and put the phone away again. Turning the light off he buried his head in the soft pillow, closing his eyes. _Tomorrow'll be a good day_, he thought absently before slowly falling asleep in the darkness. The phone chimed one more time after, illuminating the room in a dim light.

[_Reply to _Magnus, 22:03] _i'll see you there. good night, magnus._

[Magnus, 22:06] _good night, darling._

**-.::.-**

**This should be renamed as 'Alec and The Phone', seriously. I have no idea where I'm going at with this story. I guess we'll see about that in time. Also should there be some of Magnus' point of view in this story or not? I'll leave it for you to decide.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Yay, Magnus's point of view. **And yay, Tessa is in this story too now, apparently. **This was so much easier to write than Alec's point of view, for whatever reason. Anyway, I literally just sat down and wrote this so if it doesn't make sense/has thousand typos, let me know. And also THANK YOU once again for reviews and all that jazz, makes me a happy person.**

**Disclaimer: Nope. Still not owning a thing. Nope, not making a single penny out of this.**

**-.::.-**

The morning light shone through the curtains, making Magnus roll over to the other side of his bed and bury his head deeper into the mattress. The distant noise of cars driving way down on the streets was enough to keep him awake, enabling the possibility of getting to sleep a little more. With a groan Magnus slowly lifted his head, opening his eyes enough to see around.

He hated mornings, absolutely loathed them. And usually he would try to ignore the cars and sunlight and everything else that was distracting him from sleeping, but that wasn't happening today. Because he was seeing Alec again. The sheer thought made Magnus feel more alive than he had in a while, his stomach twisting in a nice way. He smirked and stretched his arms lazily.

And even if Magnus felt a bit like a teenage girl with her first crush, who cared? He certainly did not.

So Magnus woke up way too early, just to get ready for a date. If Tessa could see her now, she would either die from laughter or the shock of seeing him out of bed before 10 am.

Sighing, Magnus sat up and placed his feet on the cold floor. Chairman Meow jumped on the bed, pressing his head on the back of Magnus's hand. Scratching the cat, Magnus felt a smile tugging his lips. "I just met him," he muttered to himself. "And I'm already completely smitten. That's a first one, huh?" Pulling his hand away from Chairman Magnus pushed some fallen hair back behind his ear, stood up and walked over to the bathroom.

Flicking the lights on, he leaned against the white board in front of the mirror and stared at his tired reflection. A few black strands escaped again, hanging loose while the rest of his hair was pulled into a pony tail. The bags under his eyes told the truth about last night, when he'd been too excited and nervous to fall asleep. All because of Alec. A boy he'd literally met yesterday.

Magnus didn't know what it was about Alec, but the second Magnus had spotted his blue eyes looking at him, he was sold. It wasn't love at first sight or anything – Magnus didn't believe in love anyway. But it definitely was something, and he was sure as hell going to try his best to make everything work alright.

Splashing cold water to his face as an attempt to properly wake up, Magnus let the thoughts about Alec slip away for a moment. He needed to focus, and thinking about last evening wasn't helping in the slightest. Wiping the water off with his hand, Magnus grinned. He wasn't going to screw it up tonight – he was going to make sure everything went well.

**-.::.-**

Magnus only bit his nails when he was extremely nervous, and right now he was downright chewing them. Pacing in the living room of his apartment, Magnus had for the last hour or so tried to calm down without much of a success. He was supposed to see Alec in a few hours; they'd agreed on meeting around seven at the same place as yesterday. And to say Magnus was freaking out was a huge understatement.

He was pretty sure his footsteps would soon start to leave marks on the floor as he turned around and around, Chairman Meow sitting on the couch and watching him with keen eyes. The weirdest part in all this was that Magnus didn't have _any reason at all _to be nervous right now.

His hair was fine, his make up was fine, his clothes were fine – everything was just _fine_. And if it was a normal date he'd probably be in his usual state of confidence at this point, and not worrying about every single little detail like he was at the moment. So why was he?

Because of Alexander Lightwood.

The thought of simply _seeing _Alec again made him happy and brought butterflies to his stomach, and a number of other things Magnus wasn't used to feeling. It was new, and strange, and Magnus hadn't been this confused since he'd realized that oh yeah, girls weren't really his thing that much after all.

He'd texted Tessa about ten minutes ago, but she hadn't answered yet. Magnus really wished she'd come up with some sort of calming thing before Magnus would have to leave. Then he'd be less in danger of messing up due to his nerves.

He was in the middle of taking another step towards the kitchen before turning again when his phone rang, making him jump towards it like it was the cure for cancer. Magnus checked the caller name – Tessa – before answering, relieved.

"Please tell me you can help me somehow" he said, sitting down next to Chairman who immediately moved to curl into his lap. Magnus heard Tessa give a soft chuckle before replying. "Having boyfriend trouble, huh?" The amusement was clear in her voice.

"I don't– he's not my boyfriend, alright? And won't be if you don't start helping me right now."

"Okay, okay. Whatever you say. So what's the problem?"

Biting his lower lip, Magnus explained everything from saving Alec from an awful blind date to how pretty his eyes were to how he was having a nervous breakdown because of a boy for the first time since ever to _what the hell was he supposed to do_?

Tessa was quiet for a moment, pondering Magnus's words.

"I honestly can't figure out another solution other than that you just go to see him. That'll probably make you get over the stress of accidentally fucking up, and then you can just... I don't know, go with the flow?"

Magnus rolled his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"_Go with the flow_, really? That's your advice for a friend having serious problems?"

Tessa made a sound somewhere between a snort and a sigh. "I wouldn't call your situation a serious problem, but whatever."

"It is serious to me!" Magnus argued, but smiled anyway. Tessa seemed to have that affect on him.

"Yeah, I know. Now you go out there and woo that boy, and then tell me all about it tomorrow, got it?"

"Of course. I'll call you tomorrow then," he said and after Tessa threatened him with kidnapping Chairman Meow if he didn't, Magnus hang up. The smile was still on his face as he stood up once again, checking the time.

It was half to seven.

Eyes widening slightly, he rushed to the hallway to put on his shoes. If anything, Magnus wasn't going to show up late. Not one minute. Grabbing his keys and putting his coat on, Magnus shut the lights and said "Wish me luck" to Chairman. When the cat showed no signs of interest in his words, Magnus shook his head before leaving and closing the door behind him.

**-.::.-**

**Going to continue at some point, probably this week if I'm feeling ambitious. (Also this was kind of a filler chapter but oh well, let's go with it.)**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I was supposed to write this like three days ago but, um. I'm a lazy person. So there's that. Hope you like it anyway!**

**Disclaimer: I don't write even nearly as well as Cassandra Clare, so yeah, obviously I own nothing. Since I'm not her, you know. I don't make sense, do I?**

**-.::.-**

The one thing Magnus hadn't thought about, regardless of his careful planning? The weather. As he stepped outside, rain pouring down from the low hanging dark clouds, Magnus cursed himself for forgetting such a simple thing as that. He glanced up, lifting his other arm to cover his eyes from the water.

He could always risk being late and go back to get an umbrella. That'd also save him from possibly getting a cold, and a whole lot of other annoying things. Or he could show up on time, soaking wet from head to toe, and spend the next week after that sneezing and coughing and watching reruns of bad TV shows from his couch. Neither option was exactly a fantastic one.

Magnus really should've looked outside before he left.

Shrugging the collar of his coat up, Magnus started walking down the street. He could do without an umbrella – it wasn't even raining _that _much to begin with. He'd be at Heinley's at seven, meet Alec and have a perfect night, and it would all be just great. And if he got sick, it'd probably be worth it anyway.

**::,,::,,::**

Magnus realised it wouldn't be all that great approximately five minutes later. His hair was sticking to his forehead and the back of his neck, eyeline smudged somewhere under his eyes, and water was constantly dripping down on his nose and onto his already soaked jacket. Magnus blinked rapidly to clear the drops from his lashes, his shoes clapping against the street as he kept walking.

Magnus passed only a few people, who looked at him a little crosseyed as they went by. He ignored them all, used to people staring by now. Besides, they weren't about to have dinner with probably the prettiest thing to ever walk on this planet, were they?

As he neared the place, Magnus fished his phone out of the depths of his jacket. The time showed ten to seven. Grinning from ear to ear, Magnus turned around the last corner and strode up to the restaurant. Alec was nowhere at sight yet, and so Magnus leaned against the wall beside the doors and waited.

Ruffling his hair and trying to make it look somewhat human like, he thought about what he was doing. It wasn't like him to ask someone out a day after he met them – well, it wasn't like him to ask anyone out at all. But especially someone he had just met. And still he couldn't help the growing curiosity he felt towards Alec, like an invisible string pulling them together. That was just stupid, though. Magnus definitely didn't do dating or feel any sorts of strings towards anyone. It was most likely just his imagination.

Or that's what he told himself, at least.

Craning his neck to the right, Magnus saw someone making their way towards where he was standing. The person soon revealed to be Alec, as he walked closer and lifted his head to look at Magnus with a shy smile that made his eye lit up.

And Magnus forgot all his theories about dating, and love, and strings – if he'd be able to see Alec smile like that everyday, he'd gladly marry the boy someday. Someday near future. Hopefully. _Get a grip of yourself._

"Hey," Alec breathed out when he was withing a hearing distance from Magnus. Smiling in return, Magnus bowed slightly and winked when he straightened up.

"Alexander. My pleasure," he said and Alec chuckled nervously, stuffing his hands into his pockets. Magnus made a mental note to try and make Alec laugh as much as possible. It made the corners of his eyes crinkle in an adorable way, and his laughter was pure music to Magnus's ears.

_Dear god you're in too deep already, Bane_.

"You're, um... Kinda soaked." Alec stated, eyeing Magnus with the other half of his lips turned up in a grin.

"It's raining," Magnus replied, as if Alec hadn't noticed already. "And I forgot my umbrella" he added as an afterthought, before Alec could open his mouth to speak again. Alec nodded, amusement tingling in his eyes.

"I can see that, yeah."

They were quiet for a while, Magnus watching the way Alec's hair curled slightly at the tips and Alec looking at his shoes with a new found interest. Finally Alec glanced up, the shy smile back on his face. Magnus tried not to look too love-struck, failing miserably.

"Should we go inside? It's not exactly _warm _out here, is it?" Alec asked, glancing at the light coming from inside. Magnus made a sound of agreement, and the two of them walked side by side through the set of doors.

**::,,::,,::**

"... And so Jace thought it was a good idea to cut Izzy's hair while she was sleeping – you can guess how well that ended up when she woke up in the morning," Alec said, smiling and spinning his fork around the empty plate. Magnus raised his eyebrows, leaning forward.

"_Please_ tell me she cut his hair?"

Alec grinned mischievously, looking down at the plate. "Nope, she–"

But Magnus didn't find out what it was exactly that Isabelle had done, because Alec's sentence was cut off by said girl storming into the restaurant and marching straight towards their table. Alec frowned, setting his fork down and looking at Izzy with confusion.

Magnus felt very much the same. He had not planned this. Not at all. And it was making him very, very nervous at the moment.

"Thank the Angel you're here, Alec. I've been running around town for _hours _trying to find you, since you apparently can't pick up the phone." Izzy said, a little out of breath. Alec simply stared at her, looking slightly disoriented.

"What? Why?" He managed to ask, and Magnus thought it best for him to stay quiet. He'd meddled into enough conversations to know it usually ended badly for him.

"Mom and dad are coming back from Idris tonight, and I just thought you might want to be home when they arrive, you know? Unless you want me to cover for you, but I don't think even I'm convincing enough for that," she said quickly, not pausing to breathe for once second. When she was done talking she glanced at Magnus with a smile. Magnus was still trying to process what he'd just heard – because just where the hell was a place called _Idris_?

"Hi, you must be Magnus? The mysterious man from yesterday, right?"

"I... Yeah, that's me. Nice to meet you" Magnus said, trying to smile back. It came a bit tense, but before Izzy could say anything Alec stood up. Looking at Magnus apologetically, he picked up his coat and put it on.

"I'm so, so sorry Magnus, I really am. But it's just... My parents, they don't... I just have to go." Alec said, and seemed to hesitate for a moment. Then he leaned closer, kissing Magnus lightly on the cheek.

"I'll see you some other day, yeah? And pay you half of the bill back."

"I– sure," Magnus mumbled nearly speechless, and watched as Alec walked away after Isabelle with one last 'sorry' and a small smile over his shoulder. Touching his cheek with the tips of his fingers, Magnus felt a wide grin take over his face as he stared at the door after Alec.

_You're screwed_, he thought to himself. _So screwed_.

**-.::.-**

**And once again **– **a super large thank you for everyone reviewing, favouriting and following this sleep deprivedly written and kinda sucky fic with bad grammar. I love you all, even though that sounds creepy. Also still no idea where I'm going with the plot, but we'll see.**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Back to Alec's point of view. Hope you like it. This was supposed to be posted yesterday, but I kinda got into watching Heroes and... Well. What can I say, it's an addictive show.**

**Disclaimer: As much as it pains me, I own nothing.**

**-.::.-**

"Why did I do that? _Why_ did I do that? Why–"

"Alec, shut up before I slap you. You kissed him, so what? It's not that much of a big deal."

"No, it is! I don't... What is _wrong _with me?"

Isabelle glanced back at Alec, and rolled her eyes towards the sky. "Stop worrying for a minute, alright? It was on the cheek anyway. It's not like you _molested _him or something."

Alec said nothing in return, looking at the ground while walking behind his sister. He was such an idiot, really. The night had been going well; they'd had fun – or at least Alec had. It wasn't awkward at all, talking with Magnus. It was like he could finally be himself with the other man, breath more freely than he had in a while. Admittedly it didn't make much of a sense, and he'd only known Magnus for a few days. But still. So he'd kissed Magnus, even though on the cheek, and then...

And then his parents just had to decide to come home, and make his life go downhill again. Well, maybe that was a bit of an exaggeration. Not exactly _downhill_, just... Not so great anymore. There was nothing wrong with Alec's parents, but they hadn't been that much present in Alec's life – or Izzy and Jace's for that matter. And despite their fine reputation in the Clave and in the eyes of all the other shadowhunters, Alec was almost hundred percent sure that he'd be kicked out if his parents found out about him being in the slightest bit of different.

Which brought him to think about his other problem if he was ever going to see Magnus again; shadowhunters. How do you explain to someone that you and a group of other people hunt monsters and demons as a job without coming off as a complete lunatic? He'd have to figure out a way to talk about that, and a bunch of other stuff too, and–

"Alec? We're here," Izzy said, dragging Alec back from his thoughts. Alec lifted his head up and realized they were already standing in front of the Institute, the main doors closed. His eyes widened, fear crumpling in his stomach. The main doors were _never _closed, unless...

"They're already here, aren't they?" He asked, not daring to move his gaze from the doors to look at Isabelle. He heard her step closer, and press her fingers on his wrist. The slight pressure brought Alec back to earth, calming him down.

"We have to sneak in," she began, her voice low. "It's not that late but considering it's _you _we're talking about, they're assuming you've stayed inside all day. And if they come looking for you and can't find you, they'll either assume you're missing, dead or out. In all of those cases you'd have to come up with an explanation and we both know you're a horrible liar."

The silent _unless you tell the truth _was left hanging in the air, but that wasn't an option. Not for Alec, not right now. So he settled for a short "okay" and a nod, letting Izzy drag him to the left side of the building where his room was.

**::,,::,,::**

It had seemed like an easy thing to do when Isabelle had explained it. Climb to the lowest balcony, done. Not a problem. Alec had managed it without breaking any bones so he considered it a success. Then open one of the doors leading to the balcony, quietly as not to make too much noise and draw unwanted attention. Alec had done that too, opening and closing the door after him carefully. Still not a problem. Climb the sets of stairs to his room, sneak his way through the corridors and finally go to his room? That's when the difficulties arose.

The way to the room itself wasn't a problem – Alec knew every inch and corner of the place better than his pockets after running around with Jace as a kid. But considering he had to avoid his parents while walking and try to dodge Jace who was possibly wandering around too? It became a challenge.

Alec most definitely didn't like challenges.

As he tiptoed his way towards the stair, for the first time he was actually glad about all the carpets Izzy had wanted to put on the floors at some point. They were still horrific and looked out of place, but they made his footsteps more silent. He'd have to remember to thank Isabelle sometime.

Alec walked down the stairs, and stopped to listen. There was noise coming from the kitchen, on the right, but on the left it was completely silent.

And of course, Alec had to go right in order to make it.

One slow step at a time, Alec made his way to the kitchen doors. Which were open. Alec was just about turn around and go the other way, not minding that it'd take much longer, when he heard someone talking.

"... about your son, Alexander. Do you know anything?" An unfamiliar voice was asking. Alec pressed against the wall, holding his breath and trying to listen.

"I can't understand what you'd possibly want with Alec. He's probably in his room, been there all day long reading those books of his" Maryse responded, and Alec frowned. Who was his mom talking to?

"That didn't answer my question. Do you know if anything, um, _strange _is going on with Alec?"

"Strange?"

"Yes, like... I don't know. Anything out of ordinary, really."

There was a pause, and Alec was suddenly conscious of every little noise he made. Shoe brushing into the carpet too loudly and his mother and whoever he was with would come looking for the source of it from the hallway. From where Alec was.

Then his mother spoke again, and Alec sighed in relief.

"No, I don't think so. Alexander is– he's completely normal. Was there anything else, Hoffman?"

"No, not today. Thank you, Mrs. Lightwood. I appreciate that you gave me your time. I'll see you and Robert next week?"

"Yes, of course. See you then."

Alec could hear Hoffman's footsteps walking away, followed soon by his mother's. Relaxing, Alec leaned against the wall. Who the hell was _Hoffman_? And why was he talking about Alec with his mother? Closing his eyes, Alec slumped down to the floor. _What's going on_?

**::,,::,,::**

Alec opened the door to his room, only to be greeted by Jace laying on his bed. As he noticed Alec, though, he sat up and smirked. "You've been out, haven't you?"

Alec pinched the bridge of his nose, annoyed. Jace got on his nerves a lot, and Alec didn't have the energy to argue with him right now. "Yeah, I have. What about it?"

Jace stood up so quickly Alec was afraid his back snapped. Eyes glimmering in an excited way, Jace grabbed Alec by his shoulders to keep him in place. "'_What about it'_? Alec, I've been trying to get you on a date for _years _without succeeding. I need to know _everything_," he said enthusiastically. Alec rolled his eyes.

"You're worse than Izzy, you know that?" He said and tried to shake Jace's hands off. Jace took a step back, and frowned.

"Okay, fine. Don't tell me _all _about it. But you've got to at least tell me her name."

"Nope."

"Well what does she look like?"

"Pretty."

"That's not helping."

"I know."

Jace raised his hands in a surrender, slowly walking to the door. Just as he was about to close it, he stopped. "You'll tell me one day, right? I mean, I'm your brother. You can trust me." Jace's voice was sad and hopeful at the same time, and Alec couldn't help but nod. "Of course. Just– not right now." Jace smiled quickly, and closed the door, leaving.

With the door slamming quietly, Alec felt all of the day's events wash over him like a tidal wave, making him more tired and worn out than ever. Just as he was about to go to sleep, there was a knock on the door.

"Alec? It's your mother. Can I come in? I need to talk to you about something."

**-.::.-**

**Sidenote; this fic has almost 3,000 views? That's a lot of people. Wow. I wish I could just hug everyone who's read this so far. Well unless they don't like the story. Then just a handshake. (I'm kidding.)**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: First of all, it feels like a million years since I last wrote a chapter. So, sorry about that. And also sorry about this chapter, because it's kind of short and more of a filler than anything. I just really wanted to get this out, so there. Hope you like it anyway.**

**Disclaimer: Deep sigh. I own nothing. Absolutely nothing. Except for Hoffman - he's mine. But that's just sad.**

**-.::.-**

It'd been five minutes since Maryse had came in, and she hadn't said a word in the whole time. She was just sitting in Alec's chair with her legs crossed over each other, staring at his walls or carpet or closet – basically everything else that wasn't Alec. He didn't know what to say either, and so the silence stretched on. After two more minutes, though, he couldn't take it anymore.

"What did you want to talk about?" he asked, keeping his eyes on his socks rather than his mother.

"It's, um..." She hesitated for a moment, clearly looking for right words, until she continued. "You know how important what your father and I do is, right?"

Alec nodded, not quite sure where she was going with this. If she wanted to talk about work, she could've just waited until the morning for them to have this conversation.

"Well, the thing is that... We're really needed at Idris a lot, at the moment. There's one important project going on that we're involved with, and they need us to be there." She paused for a moment to take a deep breath. "Permanently."

Now Alec looked at his mother, eyes wide. She was staring back, lips pressed tightly together. "What do you mean _permanently_?" he asked, afraid of the answer. As much as he was weary of his parents, he did love them. If they were going to stay in Idris, it would mean that either they'd all have to move with them, or that someone else would move in to watch over Alec and his siblings. Neither sounded like a thing Alec was willing to cope with anytime soon.

"Not for forever, of course. Just a few years, and then we can come back." She explained, now smiling softly. But Alec felt a cold feeling settle in his stomach already. She only smiled like that when she had something bad to say, something she knew Alec wouldn't like. "Who do you mean by 'we'?" he asked, voice wavering slightly. Maryse's smile faltered, but didn't disappear.

"Me, your father and you."

Alec froze, his breathing stopping for a minute. His lungs were in as much as shock as he was, not wanting to co-operate with his brains. Blinking rapidly, he opened his mouth to speak, only no words came out. Maryse was eyeing him with a slight frown.

"But... But what about Jace and Izzy?" Alec whispered, eyes glazed over and staring blindly at nothing. He had other arguments, and millions of questions, but that was the first one his foggy mind could come up with.

Maryse seemed to notice his shock, because she leaned closer to rest her hand on his knee.

"They'll stay here, with Mister Hoffman. He's a respectful man, he'll look after them just fine." She said in a soothing tone, eyeing Alec worriedly. Like someone trying to calm down a wild animal. He couldn't reply. He'd just got his life in order – he'd met Magnus, and there was clearly something between them, and he really wanted to see where it would lead. He had Izzy and Jace, and even Church. He couldn't move to _Idris. _He couldn't.

"I– I can't. Move there. I don't..." He started, now breathing way too fast. Leaning back and away from Maryse's touch, he noticed how his hands were shaking. He pressed them together, hoping his mother wouldn't see.

"I know it's a lot to take in, I do. But you have to think about it rationally. It's not like it'd make much difference whether you lived here or there, would it?" She replied, tilting her head to the side.

The cold panic in his stomach slowly started to warm up, flaring and turning into a slowly burning anger. "_What_?" he asked, voice emotionless and distant.

Maryse, clearly not noticing the change, smiled again and crossed her arms over her chest. "Well, I mean that you wouldn't miss all _that _much. Jace and Isabelle would both visit every once in a while, and it's not like you really _know _anyone else here, do you?"

Alec didn't answer, just stared ahead. Did he really spend so much time alone that his own mother just _assumed _that he had no other friends than Jace and Izzy? He stayed silent, pondering over what to say. After a few moments Maryse stood up, about to leave the room. Alec's voice stopped her before she got to the door.

"I do. Know someone, I mean. And I really can't leave right now." He cursed himself right after the words had left his mouth.

His mother turned around, frowning. "Who is it, then?" She asked, fingers already wrapped around the door handle and ready to leave. Like she thought Alec was making it all up. He stood up, taking a few steps towards Maryse.

"It's someone I met recently," he began and tried to stood up straighter. Now that he started talking, he couldn't seem to stop. "Someone who means quite a lot to me already. And that's why I have to stay here."

She released her hold on the handle, eyebrows raised up in a question. "We wouldn't be moving for another month or so, Alexander. Is this person really so important that you'd stay here just for her?" The tension was obvious in the air, and Alec slumped a little. Was Magnus really _that _important to him? He felt like saying no, tell her to forget it and give up. Leave to Idris with them and let Magnus alone. They'd known for such a little time, really.

But another part of him wanted keep arguing. To say that he wasn't moving away just because his parents wanted so, and try to make it work with Magnus.

Eventually, the second part won.

"Yeah, I would. I will." He said, waiting for the inevitable answer that was 'don't be silly, Alexander'. But it never came. Instead his mother smiled again, more genuinely this time than during their whole conversation, and backed towards the door again.

"She must be special, then."

And after that she left, the silence ringing after her. Alec sat down on his bed, feeling like didn't quite know what just happened. Rewinding the events, he relaxed. He wasn't going to Idris. At least not if it was up to her. Smiling to himself, he collapsed on top of his blanket and stared at the roof.

"He is special", he said to the empty room.

**-.::.-**

**I am so sorry if this sucks. I wrote half of the chapter while having a killer headache, so. Bear with me. I say a lot of 'so' and 'sorry', don't I?**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Oh jesus I'm busy. Dunno why I thought it'd be a good idea to finish this before Christmas, **_**and **_**also write five one shots. I must hate myself. Anyway, back into the humor aspect of the story (I hope). Hope you like it! Also, is indoor phone a thing? 'Cause I have no idea what it actually is in english and couldn't be bothered to google it because of general laziness.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing and I've ran out of other ways to say it. **

**-.::.-**

"Yeah, I mean, then his sister popped in–"

"_Really_?"

"–and he had to go, that's it."

Tessa sighed loudly at the other end of the line. Magnus was sprawled on his couch where he'd fallen asleep last night after watching TV, on the phone with her. She'd called half an hour ago and woke him up, demanding him to tell how the date went.

"You can't just not give me all the details, Mags. Not fair", she said and Magnus could hear distant noise of traffic on the background.

"I can and I will. Where are you?" He glanced at the clock, frowning. "It's early."

He could practically hear Tessa rolling her eyes at him through the phone. "Everything before midday is early for you. Anyway, some of us have actual things to do. You know, like work."

"Sounds exhausting. Besides, you don't work on Tuesdays. And you didn't answer my question", Magnus replied, switching the phone from one ear to another. He pulled a blanket tighter around him, sneezing.

"Fine, I'm on my way to your apartment. You're sick, and someone needs to look after you."

Magnus sat up, the blanket falling off. Chairman Meow jumped down, mewling in annoyance.

"I am not–" The sentence was cut short by a cough and another sneeze.

"Sick? Sure you're not. Alright, I'll be there soon so be ready to buzz me in or whatever", Tessa said before she hung up. Magnus collected the blanket again, standing up and wrapping it around him. "Why am I friends with her again?" he muttered to himself, walking to the kitchen to make tea.

He wasn't _sick_, not really. Just a little flu that'd be over in no time. It was probably from the rain; it'd been a mistake not to get the umbrella. Few cups of tea, couple pills and he'd be as good as new. He didn't need to be _looked after._ Although he'd gladly take Alec to look after him for a day or twenty. It was getting to a level of addiction, really – when Magnus saw the other man he'd want just a tad more. A few more minutes. A few more shy glances. A few more everything.

He was so way past the border and on the dark side it was sad.

Sipping the now ready cup of tea, Magnus made his way to the door. He leaned against the wall, waiting for the indoor phone to ring and inform about Tessa being there. He wondered how long it'd take to get her out of the apartment once she was in, and just how much of that time he'd have to talk about Alec with her. He didn't mind that part all that much, though. Rather that than talking about how he was _not _sick, because that just didn't happen. He guessed around five hours if he was lucky.

The phone rang, startling Magnus and making him spill the remains of the tea on his shirt. Cursing out loud, he pressed the button to let Tessa in and went to drop the now empty cup into the sink. His shirt was soaked at the front, and just as he was about to go and change it Tessa knocked on the door.

"You look like shit", was the first thing she said after coming in and taking one look at Magnus. "Is that tea?" she asked and pointed at his shirt with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, it, uh, spilled. I'll go change, you make yourself comfortable", he said. Which, as it turned out, was the worst thing he could've said.

By the time he got back with a clean shirt, Tessa had seemingly raided his kitchen and was sitting on the couch with a box of cookies, tea, and Chairman Meow. She was also apparently going through his texts with no shame whatsoever.

"What are you– is that my phone?" Magnus asked as he got closer, sitting next to her and craning his neck to see better. He glanced at the screen, the name _Alexander _popping to his eyes. "That is my phone. What, exactly, are you doing with my phone?" She read on, pausing for a moment to look at Magnus. "You really like this Alexander guy, don't you? Like, more than you usually like people."

Magnus snatched the phone from her hands, throwing it to the table.

"Don't call him that."

"What, Alexander or guy?"

"Neither."

"Oh, is it like your special privilege to call him Alexander or something?"

"Uh-huh. So don't do it."

Tessa smiled with amusement, grabbing a cookie from the bag and eating it. Magnus frowned. "Are those from my kitchen?" He asked with slight concern. Tessa nodded. "You did check that they're still alive, right?" Another nod. Magnus felt it was safe enough to eat one.

Tessa gulped, drinking the rest of her tea and turning to fully face Magnus. She eyed his pale face and the blanket he was once again buried in. "I'm not sick," he said when she opened her mouth to say something. She raised her eyebrows.

"Sorry to break it to you, but yeah. You kind of are. And it's something else besides the fact that you're love sick, I'm pretty sure. Though you probably have that too", she said and Magnus rolled his eyes. It'd be a long, long day before he'd get her out.

**-.::.-**

It only took three hours of Tessa teasing him about Alec and drinking tea until she was standing in the hall, ready to go. Magnus was carefully wrapped in his blanket, his new favourite thing in the world, and holding Chairman Meow in his arms.

"So, I'll see you around alright?" Tessa said with a smile.

"Yeah, of course. Seems like I can't get rid of you anyway", Magnus said but returned the smile.

"And keep me updated on the Alec thing?"

"Sure. Though I'll make you meet him if this goes on, just so you know."

Tessa nodded, and stepped outside with one last wave. Magnus wandered back to the living room and flopped down on the couch. Breathing out a sigh he closed his eyes.

Then he picked up the phone from where it lay on the table and searched through the names. Alec answered on the third ring.

"Magnus?"

"Yeah, it's me. Is it a good time or should I call later?"

"No, it's fine. Just in time, actually. Izzy was being annoying, you saved me from a two hour chat about his newest boyfriend", Alec said with a sigh. "When I told her you called she ran out of the door with the speed of light to 'give me privacy'."

Magnus gave a laugh, which quickly turned into a cough.

"Are you alright? You sound a little off." Alec sounded genuinely worried. Magnus smiled despite how terrible he felt. There was no denying it now – he was sick. No matter how much he hated it, it was true.

"Just a little flu, that's all. I'll be fine." Another cough and a sniff.

"Is it from the rain yesterday?"

"Yeah, probably. I knew I should've taken the umbrella." He heard Alec chuckle.

"So did you want to talk about something, or...?" Alec asked after few seconds of silence.

"No, just thought I'd call you." Magnus stood up, walking to the windows and watching the city. It was only three in the afternoon but the sun was already hanging low, coloring the buildings orange.

"Oh. That's nice of you. I, uh..." There was a pause. "I kind of missed your voice. If that's not too creepy."

Magnus forced down a grin before he realized Alec couldn't see him and smiled widely.

"I kind of missed your voice too. And I kind of miss your face too, already."

"Me too. Your face, I mean. Not mine. I'm rambling, sorry." Magnus could imagine him blushing. His smile widened even more, if possible.

"No problem, darling." He glanced backwards, noticing Chairman Meow sitting on the floor and watching him. "I have to go, my cat's probably going to eat me soon if I don't feed it. I'll call or text you tomorrow?"

Alec laughed again. "Well, we can't have that. And yeah, I'll talk to you tomorrow", he said before hanging up.

Magnus walked past his cat, to the kitchen and sighed. "What am I gonna do with you, huh? You eat more than I do." Chairman meowed loudly. "I should ask him out to another date, right?" Chairman stayed quiet. Magnus took it as a yes. Filling the empty bowl and making his way back to the couch, he wondered why tomorrow couldn't come any faster.

**-.::.-**

**So this'll continue on the 30th day, if I can keep up with my schedule. If not, then a little bit later than that. ALSO a huge, huge thank you for all of you who are following this, or favourited this, or reviewed. I love you all.  
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	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: So hear me out. This was supposed to be another five or so chapters, right? Right. But I realised that I have **_**million **_**things to do (that means about fifteen things) on top of this story. And since all of my plot points for the rest of the chapters were not so interesting/sort of pointless, I'll do this instead. I'm pretty sure nothing's left unclear after this chapter but if so, let me know and I'll rewrite this or something. This is the last chapter, and I'm sorry for the time skip, but I needed it to happen. Now I can bury this story and focus on other things. If I find time next year, I'll think about writing something for those five missing months of this story. But for now, thank you and enjoy! (Also sorry for the super long author's note, I just like writing about absolutely nothing.)**

**Disclaimer: Nu-uh, don't own it.**

**-.::.-**

_Five months later:_

"Alec? You coming or not?"

"Yeah, I'll be right there, just give me a minute!"

Izzy rolled her eyes, waiting by the door impatiently. Alec was deciding what scarf to pick, acting more nervous than Isabelle had ever seen him. "It's just a scarf, I doubt it'll lessen his love for you if you take either one of them," she said and sighed when Alec showed no sign of moving away from the mirror.

"Look, Jace is probably freezing outside waiting for us. Think about his health", Izzy tried, wishing Alec would just hurry the hell up. She'd been waiting for this, meeting Alec's mysterious boyfriend officially, for way too long. And now they were about to be late because Alec suddenly decided to start caring about his appearance and fashion choices for the first time in his whole life.

"Yeah, yeah. Just... which one?" Alec asked, turning around and lifting both the blue and black scarf in his hands. Izzy rolled her eyes, taking a few steps forward. She eyed both of them, before pointing at the blue one.

"That'll bring your eyes out. He has a thing for your eyes, right?"

Alec tossed the black one on the floor, mumbling something under his breath and wrapping the blue scarf around his neck. Izzy was right – it did 'bring out his eyes', or something like that. He took one more look in the mirror before stepping outside, Isabelle trailing after him.

Jace was standing in front of the steps, kicking piles of snow with a bored expression. He glanced up when the door opened, smiling at Alec and Izzy. "So, you finally ready to go then? Introduce your '_mysterious date_'," he asked and made air quotes with his fingers. Alec didn't respond, walking past him and towards the restaurant where he'd first met Magnus.

So, alright. He still hadn't told Jace about Magnus, or that Magnus was a guy. But they were about to meet in person in half an hour or so, meaning there was no point in explaining things to him now, right? Hopefully it wouldn't go too badly. They both had large personalities, and in the worst case scenario they'd collide in an ugly way. But Alec had high hopes for the dinner, and an escape plan if either of them killed each other, so he figured it was all alright one way or another.

"So she knows, huh? About shadowhunters and all?" Jace asked, walking up next to Alec and raising his eyebrows. Alec nodded. "Yeah, h–, uh, she does. I told her about it last month," he muttered and hoped Jace wouldn't pay too much attention on the slip. It didn't really matter, seeing as Jace was about to see Magnus anyway, but Alec wasn't up to explaining right now that oh yeah, by the way, he was dating a dude. But Jace didn't notice, apparently not listening all that carefully.

"And she's still with you? She didn't freak out and run away screaming or anything?" Jace sounded surprised, but Alec had felt the same about Magnus's reaction at the time.

"Yeah, she just said 'that's cool, so tell me again that story where Isabelle shaved Jace's eyebrows and dyed his hair pink.'"

Well, that hadn't been _exactly _what Magnus had said but pretty close. After Alec had nervously paced in front of a park bench for some time, with Magnus sitting and watching him with raised eyebrows, he'd finally blurted out something about demons, and shadowhunters, and Idris in a long mess of words that made very little sense even to him. But Magnus had understood most part of it, and shrugged it off with "I've heard and seen weirder stuff than that." And Alec hadn't brought it up again, feeling relieved that Magnus hadn't signed him up for mental hospital or something like that.

"That's something," Jace said and whistled lowly. "She's a keeper."

"That she is", Alec agreed and they walked in silence for the rest of the way.

**-.::.-**

The bell hanging from the door made a soft 'cling' when Alec opened the door, glancing around the place to find Magnus. It didn't take long to spot him – his hair was a mix of blue and purple at the moment, standing out from the crowds of blonde and brown. With long steps, Alec marched towards the table, expecting Jace and Izzy to follow him. They did.

He was a few meters away when Magnus noticed him, raising his head and giving Alec a happy smile that he easily returned. "Hey," he breathed out and slid next to Magnus who replied with "You're late" and a light kiss that would've made Alec blush if he wasn't so used to it already. Then he turned to look at Jace and Isabelle, the latter already sitting down in front of them while Jace stood, frowning.

"You're Jace, right? You can sit down, I won't eat you," Magnus said with a grin. Another thing Alec had forgotten – he hadn't mentioned Jace thinking Magnus was a girl to said person. Izzy clearly wasn't going to help him out, simply grinning at Alec when he glanced at her, so Alec coughed awkwardly and turned to look at the table.

"So Jace, this is, uh, Magnus. We've been... going out for the past half a year or so," he mumbled, waving his hand somewhere towards Magnus without looking at either of them. Jace didn't say anything. "Please sit, you're making me uncomfortable." Alec added after a minute or so of silence.

"I take it you didn't tell him, then?" Magnus asked, making Alec lift his head to look at him. Magnus didn't seem angry or anything like that – amused, more likely. He was still grinning at Jace, who'd got over the first shock and was now sitting next to Izzy, across from Magnus.

"Uh, I forgot. Sort of. I mean, he knew I was with someone, just... I might've given the impression that you were a girl."

Magnus smirked. Jace blinked rapidly at Magnus's colorful hair. Isabelle looked smug.

"So... you're dating Alec, then?" Jace asked after a moment of silence. Magnus nodded in agreement.

"I've been seeing Alexander for the past five, six months yes. Glad to finally meet you in person, by the way. I've heard _so much _about you," he said and Alec felt like fleeing the crime scene when it still was possible, because of the arrogant look Jace was giving now. _He got over the whole thing quickly_.

"Oh, me too. Alec's been telling me _all _about you, how much he lo–"

"What do you want to drink?" Alec interrupted quickly, trying to make Jace shut up with his eyes. Because among all the other things, he hadn't said the official 'I love you' to Magnus even though he knew he loved him, and Jace _really needed to shut up _because he didn't want to confess his feelings to the whole restaurant. Fortunately, Jace seemed to get the message and changed the subject.

**-.::.-**

"I love your hair, by the way." Izzy said to Magnus and pointed at his head with a fork. Magnus grinned, teeth showing.

"Thanks. Yours, too. What kind of shampoo do you use?", he replied and Alec almost rolled his eyes. When he'd wished that Magnus got along with his siblings, he hadn't exactly meant they started changing beauty tips with each other. But that was better than planning on murdering each other, so Alec figured he could handle it.

Jace had been quiet for a while, more quiet than usual, and Alec was about to ask what was wrong when he spoke up.

"So how did you two meet, exactly?"

Magnus stopped his explanation of just how much glitter he used and what labels he recommended to look at Jace. Alec didn't know what to say – 'I was on the crappy date that you arranged, and he saved me from an entire evening of torture' didn't seem like a good response – but luckily Magnus had it all figured out. Alec wondered if he'd rehearsed his following speech, expecting the question in advance.

"I was out, alone because my friend ditched me on the last minute. I noticed poor Alexander on a _horrible _date with some woman – the one you had set up with him? And decided that it was my duty as a citizen to save him from the terrifying fate of being stuck with her for the rest of the night. So we talked, and exchanged numbers. I'm so charming Alec couldn't resist meeting me again, and so here we are."

Alec gave him a doubtful look (because really, '_I'm so charming?_) but nodded in agreement. It was basically what he'd thought, just presented in a better way.

Jace nodded slowly, beginning to grin. "So technically you met because of me?"

"As much as it pains me to admit it, yes." Magnus said, giving a dramatic sigh and throwing his other arm over Alec's shoulder. Alec automatically leaned closer, and both Izzy and Jace smiled warmly.

"You're way too adorable", Izzy said and Alec ducked his head mumbling in disagreement. Magnus laughed, kissing the top of his head which made Alec hide deeper down.

"Speaking of adorable," Isabelle said to Magnus. "What are you doing for Christmas?"

Alec lifted his head, looking at Magnus with raised brows. "Yeah, that's right. I was supposed to ask you earlier, but I forgot. You have any special plans?"

Magnus took a moment to think, frowning. Then he shook his head.

"I'm pretty sure I have nothing. Why?"

Izzy practically beamed, clapping her hands together excitedly. Alec smiled too.

"We were thinking that you could come to our place. Mom and dad are at– they're away, and it'd be just us 'cause Mr. Hoffman said he'll go visit his nephew or something in France. What do you say?"

Mr. Hoffman, as it turns out, actually was the nicest guy ever once he moved in to the Institution after Maryse and Robert left for Idris. Alec had a suspicion he knew Alec was seeing someone, but never asked anything about it. Mostly he left them alone, and didn't really mind if they stayed up too late or didn't come home for the night. Which was why Alec had spend a few night's at Magnus's place every now and then.

Magnus grinned, pressing Alec closer to him again. "Sure, I'd love to. Count me in."

And so they continued the dinner, Alec comfortably slumped against Magnus and Izzy and Jace watching them with identical grins. It was sort of creepy, but Alec woulnd't have it any other way, really.

**-.::.-**

They left the place a little after nine, Isabelle and Jace going back to the Institute and Alec and Magnus going over to his apartment. After Izzy had hugged Magnus to death and made him promise to be there at Christmas (Alec was sometimes ashamed that they were related), they went their separated ways.

They walked side by side in silence, with Magnus snow falling down on them like powder before Magnus spoke.

"So about what Jace said earlier, when you first came in..."

He trailed off, but Alec knew what he was talking about. And he guessed now was as good time as any to talk about it, so he let Magnus continue.

"He was about to say you loved me, wasn't he?"

There was something in Magnus's tone that was almost hopeful, and Alec dared to look at the other man. Half of his head was hidden under a hat, only a few strands of hair falling on his face, gently touching the tip of his nose. His eyes, usually cover in glitter and what-not, were simply lined by black lashes that Alec was pretty sure were fake. And his smile was the same as the day Alec had first met him, reaching his eyes and lighting his whole face in away Alec would never understand.

There was a lot about Magnus Alec didn't understand, and probably never would. But that was alright. They had time to figure each other out. And so Alec smiled too, and said what he'd wanted to say for quite some time now.

"Yeah, he was. I do love you. A lot. More than I probably should, anyway. But I don't mind."

And when Magnus mirrored his smile, and took his hand, Alec realized he really didn't mind at all.

"That's good. 'Cause I love you too. More than is healthy." He leaned down, pressing a kiss against Alec's smiling lips. "And I don't really mind either."

**-.::.-**

**Sorry this was kind of abrupt, but I couldn't figure out another way to end this story. So this is it, and I want to thank every singe person who read it his far and reviewed or followed or favorited or all of those (especially Lindsey, you're awesome). Really, thank you. And without further ado;**

**_The end_.**


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